myfuture: Managing Career Uncertainty and Anxiety: The Power of Career Conversations

08/06/2023

This article was authored by Senior Research Fellow Dr Jo Gleeson and Director of The Centre for Youth Policy and Education Practice (CYPEP) Professor Lucas Walsh from Monash University. See references and the Insights paper in its entirety here.

When young people are not certain, or struggle to make decisions about their future careers, they can feel anxious or concerned. These types of feelings can be a common cause of stress in educational settings. 

Here we share a brief questionnaire that can help young people to become more aware of their feelings associated with career decision-making. The questionnaire can facilitate productive career conversations between them and others, such as career practitioners, teachers and parents or guardians.

Career uncertainty and stress

Career uncertainty has been defined as the inability, as a teenager, to articulate a career ambition or occupational expectation for adult life (Mann et al., 2020). As transitions from school to further education, training or work have become more unpredictable, and employment markets more competitive and fluid, career uncertainty in young people, both in Australia and internationally, is increasingly common.

Australian studies have shown that young people’s career indecision and uncertainty are associated with career concerns and anxiety (Campagna & Curtis, 2007; Creed et al., 2009; Skrbiš & Laughland-Booÿ, 2019). These can lead to a range of negative feelings such as helplessness, depression, stress, lack of purpose and despair (Creed et al., 2016). 

Being aware is important

It is critical that young people build their own career awareness of not only occupational options or study pathways, but also of their feelings and the decision-making processes associated with making choices. Understanding ‘why’ they are choosing certain careers, or struggling to make decisions, can prompt them to explore different pathways, investigate employment market trends or reflect further on how their own strengths and interests relate to career options. Studies have shown that the more time young people invest in career exploration and career planning, the greater their career certainty and confidence become (Skorikov, 2007).

It is also important that young people acknowledge that making career decisions is a complex, ongoing process, and that the skills and knowledge that they are building through this process are beneficial to their overall career development and future employability (Tomlinson, 2017). Understanding that career decision-making will likely evoke different emotions at different times is key to managing their own wellbeing. 

It is critical that career advisors, teachers, and parents and carers support young people as they explore different career pathways and make career decisions. An important role for adults is helping young people to understand that although they don’t need to have all of the ‘answers’ while still at school, they still need to invest in career exploration and reflection. 

The power of career conversations

Career conversations are a valuable way for young people to make sense of career information and choices (Roberts et al., 2023). Recent work by the OECD has shown that when young people have conversations with others about their careers, they have lower levels of career uncertainty and anxiety (Mann et al., 2020). These conversations can be broad-ranging and cover young people’s awareness of their own interests and strengths, their career goals and preferences, their knowledge of the requirements and conditions of success of different study-career pathways, as well as their ideas about transitioning from education settings into work. 

An aim for productive conversations between career advisors, teachers, parents and carers and young people is to help them express how they feel about their career choices and the career decision-making processes. The conversations can explore:

  • how these feelings may be impacting their wellbeing and what support they may need
  • how these feelings may prompt additional career exploration that will benefit their career decision-making and certainty
  • what further conversations are necessary to improve their career certainty and confidence. For example, young people may be encouraged by teachers or career advisors to have conversations with their parents or carers to reconcile adults’ expectations with their own career choices.

A useful conversation frame

Figure 1 presents a brief questionnaire that can be used to underpin semi-structured career conversations with young people. The questionnaire comprises 13 items that focus on three topics related to young people’s career uncertainty and anxiety. The three topics are:

  1. Career direction and purpose (first four questions; dark blue)
  2. Career uncertainty and anxiety triggering factors (next five questions; mid blue)
  3. Feelings of career stress (last four questions; pale blue). 


Figure 1. Career Uncertainty and Anxiety Questionnaire (adapted from Gleeson, 2020)

Young people can select a single response to each item based on a 5-point Likert scale (Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree). Responses can form the basis of a conversation to explore why young people are feeling a particular way, what actions they may take to help resolve their feelings (e.g. additional career exploration activities, further conversations with others), and what support young people may need to manage their wellbeing. 

Supporting each other

These types of conversations can be challenging for all involved. Young people might not be comfortable sharing their feelings, or they may need greater support and encouragement to fully articulate their thoughts. There might also be wellbeing issues, such as existing mental health conditions, that need to be considered. 

The aim is for the conversations to be safe and positive experiences for young people, where their responses are respected and they feel heard in the discussions. Co-creating action plans with young people allows them to feel as if the conversations are both purposeful and productive. 

The conversations should also be safe and positive experiences for career advisors, teachers, or parents and carers, where they feel respected for their interest in supporting young people with their career decision-making. Setting some ground rules about how the conversation will occur may be a worthwhile first step. Being mindful of when to include others, such as school counsellors or school leaders, in the conversations is also crucial.

The following myfuture resources can be used to support these conversations: